I am sitting here looking for something to watch on "me" night! The kid is asleep, the wife is out and I am looking to catch up on some TV. Yes, I should be writing, but my ideas need to marinate (and I need to procrastinate). It is the time of year when all of us reflect on the highs and lows of the year: what we liked best, what was okay, and what we walked away from. So here are my top picks out of the 400 odd new shows that dropped in 2015.
Jessica Jones: This is Marvel's best TV outing to date. The story is strong, the cast is excellent and it deals with a series of issues in an approachable manner with a noir wrapping. It has 13 really good episodes (but could have been 9 or 10 amazing episodes). (LUKE CAGE!!!! SWEET CHRISTMAS! 2016!)
Red Oaks: I am surprised by how much I like this Amazon original show. It is an homage to 80s movies, with all of their greatness, quirkiness and lack of diversity. My wife laughed the whole time and it reflected swaths of her life.
Dark Matter: This show was incredible breath of fresh air. It is so hard to find good science fiction that based in space. The acting was good, the stories solid and the Blake's 7 like ending (one of the best I have ever seen) had me giggling, even as my wife asked, "Blake what?" (I am also a huge Roger Cross fan so that may have given the show bonus points.)
Catastrophe: Another great Amazon original show. It is incredibly funny, and depicts modern day relationships and the inherent struggles within them.
Galavant: I have already written a love letter to this great show. Can't wait for the new season in 2016!
Master of None: An incredible show that did not back down from masterfully and humorously addressing some serious issues in our society. One of the funniest shows of the year, that was also self assured and a tight 10 episodes.
Togetherness: A dramedy about the death of dreams and the struggle of a midlife crisis. An incredible show and one that HBO should be proud to have. The Duplass brothers rarely disappoint. My one hope is that they add more diversity to their projects.
The Carmichael Show: I loved this show, even watching it reminded me of a TV version of my family and home life from my youth. The cast was incredible; they touched on some serious topics and did not back away from them. Refreshing, even more so given that it is on network TV and has been renewed for another (hopefully longer) season.
Honorable Mention! iZombie: This is a gem of a show with a stellar cast, doing some great geek television and making it look easy. Each episode has me laughing and wanting to see the next one.
All in all, a great year for television demonstrating the power of the medium.